Action movies channeling Harryhausen?

There are a number of good ‘creature/action’ flicks coming out soon, and more than one of them call to mind the creations of the incomparable Ray Harryhausen.

One of them is ‘Seventh Son’, starring Jeff Bridges in a rather different role than we’re used to seeing him in (though the voice is, perhaps not surprisingly, at least somewhat reminiscent of his recent portrayals of Roycephus Pulsipher and Reuben J. “Rooster” Cogburn).

Another is ’47 Ronin’, a different take on the story of the Shi-jū-shichi-shi. It is widely considered to be the ‘national legend of Japan’. Keanu Reeves appears in his first major film effort since Constantine as a “half-breed” in a Samurai-ere Japan replete with witches and supernatural monsters. It’s not wuxia, mind you, that’s the wrong Asian genre.

These look good and will no doubt be fun to watch (if you don’t take them too seriously), but it’s hard to avoid a little melancholy when we see the monsters. Rest easy Mr. Harryhausen.